Pokemon Adventures: Soul Ch07 The Real Soul!

Chapter 7: The Real Soul!

It was completely dark out now, only the street lights were on, and the stars and moon lit up the sky like fire flies. Emperor and I took our first steps into Floaroma town quietly, silent like the calm breeze.

"The center is probably still open, we should stop there and rest for the night," Emperor whispered to me.

I nodded in agreement, "It is dark…I suppose its fine to stop and rest. We will look for Cynthia in the morning" I responded.

We headed straight to the pokemon center after that. When we got inside, we could see one of the night shift nurses laying her head on the desk, passed out. We walked up to her and just stared down at her in confusion, hesitant about what we should do. I glanced over and saw that she was laying down on one arm, with her hand firmly wrapped around a liquor bottle.

"Umm…should we let her sleep?" whispered Emperor.

As soon as Emperor said that, the nurse snorted loudly and woke up from her slumber. She looked up at me and Emperor, as she reached for her round glasses on the table next to her. We just stared at each other for a solid minute.

The nurse hiccupped, "Oh are you both in need for a room tonight?" she asked, still half asleep.

"Yes, do you still have some rooms available for us?" I asked her in a calm voice.

She nodded briskly, her eyes still glazed over with a drunken stupor.

"Your name sir?" she asked.

I told her my name, and she looked up at me again as if she had been waiting for me.

"Soul? Well there was a special request for you..." she said, as she handing me a key, "3rd floor, door on your right, good night" she said as she yawned.

The nurse took another swig at her drink, then promptly put her head back on her desk and went back to sleep.

As we made our way to the room, I couldn't help but think who was expecting me? I pulled out the microchip I had in my pocket. Cynthia…so she definitely is waiting to train me I thought to myself.

Emperor and I walked up to the door, anxious to find out who was waiting for us on the other side of the door. I put the key in, and the lock made a buzz confirming the card. I opened the door, and I saw a girl. She was wrapped in a very small towel that barely covered everything, and her hair was wrapped up in a towel. Steam was still pouring out of the bathroom, and the air was very humid. I stared at the girl as she was bent over her bag, digging about inside looking for some clothes.

She heard me open the door, so she stopped and turned her head to look at me.

Her eyes began to glow a light blue, "Hi there, Soul!" she said in an angelic voice.

She turned back around, and pulled a pair of underwear out of her bag, and she put it on in front of me.

She looked back at me and she began to blush, "I know you're enjoying the show…but can you please close the door?" she said in her innocent voice.

I snapped out of my daze, and walked inside with Emperor, closing the door behind me.

Emperor shook his head, "Boy you betta smash," he said in a conceded voice.

"Shut up and get in your pokeball," I grunted, retreating Emperor into his ball.

I looked back at the girl, and stared into her glowing eyes, "Who are you?" I asked sternly.

The girl didn't respond, and she turned around and took the towel off. Her back was exposed to me, but it didn't seem to bother her. She reached into her bag and grabbed a giant t-shirt out of it, and put it on.

She finally turned back to me and smiled, "The name's Spirit!" she said in an energetic voice,

"My mom told me all about you! I had an argument with her again yesterday; she wanted me to come home, to which I said no. So she told me she would send me a "body guard" and I can go anywhere I wanted as long as it was with him."

Spirit walked toward me, with a gentle smile still on her face.

"I figured I'd see you in the morning, so I told the nurse to give you a key, and let you in, so I could meet you back here later on in the day but alas, too my surprise," she lifted her hand and pointed at me, "The "body guard" decided to come in unannounced and get a free peep show! How bold~" she laughed.

I shook my head, "Look, I'm not here because I wanted to be. I did not sign up for being a fuckin body guard. I came here to bring you home, but it seems you spoke to your mother already" I said in a cold voice, "So if I'm not needed here, I have some things to-" but before I finished, there was a loud banging at the door.

I jumped quickly over to the door, "PREPARE YOURSELF!" I yelled to Spirit, clutching Emperor's poke ball on my waist, expecting an attack from some Syndicate thugs.

I opened the door, and Heart busted in, completely knocking me over and walking over me.

"I heard talking! Are you okay beautiful?" he said anxiously, as though Spirit were in grave danger.

Before I could get up, another person came in knocking me back down to the ground.

"Yeah! Me and Heart heard you being attacked!" said the voice of a younger boy. I looked up at the kid, and saw that he was wearing a black snap back hat, with a white and black t-shirt. He also wore a pair of comfortable looking shorts that had rips at the hems.

"You idiots, watch where you're going!" I growled at them as I stood up dusting myself off.

Heart and the kid turned to look at me with surprised expressions on their faces.

Heart gasped loudly, "HOW DID HE GET IN HERE!" he bellowed.

Spirit was starting to get irritated, as she placed her hands on her hips, "I invited him in, he's my guest," she said.

Heart was outraged with her response, "A man and a woman in the same room at this time of night! Alone and unchaperoned? While you are looking so ecchi!? I WONT STAND FOR IT!" he said, as tears rolled down his cheeks uncontrollably.

"You better talk chump! Who are you!" demanded the little kid as he turned his attention to me.

I didn't respond to him, and I simply glared at them.

I turned around abruptly, "I'm leaving…" I said.

I began to walk out the door, but something pulled my arm. I turned around to see Spirit had run up behind me, and grabbed my arm.

"How'd you get to me so fast?" I said to her.

She wore a serious expression on her face, "I can't allow you to leave, and I'm supposed to meet Cynthia tomorrow, along with these two idiots!" She said to me.

I glared at her, "So you're taking me to Cynthia? What business do you have with Cynthia?" I questioned.

She started getting irritated again, "I already told you, you are my body guard! My mom told me you were coming, and she insisted that I got to know you…you see when my mom says something; it is always because it is important! I don't know why, nor does she, but her advice and how she reads people has never been wrong!"

I pulled my arm away from her.

"I already told you I am not your body guard…" I began.

Heart stepped up to me, squaring up with me eye to eye.

"So you would ignore a woman's request? What kind of man are you!" he growled.

I squared up with him without hesitation, and looked him dead in the eye, "The kind who doesn't care about what people do or say, and isn't afraid to smash somebody who steps up to him" I said coolly.

Spirit stepped between us, "Heart, I need you and Core to leave!" she said.

"But he-," began Heart in protest.

"I said, Good Night, Heart" Spirit said sternly.

Heart gritted his teeth, and looked at me with a face of disgust, "Let's go Core" he said, as he bumped my shoulder on the way out.

Core glared at me for a while, and then he promptly followed Heart out of the room.

I attempted to walk out right behind them, but Spirit stopped me "Get back in here Soul," she said sternly.

I looked at her "Now hold on, who made you a boss?" I growled.

Spirit stared at me, "Don't do this with me Soul, I already told we will meet Cynthia tomorrow, so please drop the tough guy bullshit around me, and get inside!" she said, as she walked back into the room and sat on her bed.

I sighed and followed her in and closed the door again. I sat on the floor in front of her.

"Ok, you have my attention" I said.

Her eyes began to glow blue again.

"She was right after all," Spirit responded.

I looked at her in confusion, "Right about?" I asked.

She shook her head, "Nothing I can't talk about that just yet…So Cynthia asked you to visit her too, right?" she said with a smile.

I nodded, "Yea I have to deliver something to her," I said clutching the microchip in my pocket.

Spirit looked puzzled, "Bring what to her?" she asked.

I looked at her sternly, "Sorry, need to know basis only…You got your secrets, I have mine" I said to her coolly.

Spirit puffed up her cheeks, "That's mean Soul! You're mean!" she said whimpering.

She turned herself away, crossing her arms and legs.

I shook my head, "You act like a spoiled brat" I said to her.

Spirit turned her head to me, putting her hand over her mouth getting teary eyed, "How could…how could you say that to me!" she said pretending to cry.

I smirked, "Your acting is good, but stuff like that doesn't work on me" I retorted.

Spirit smiled and laughed. "I guess not! I'd have Heart eating out my hands by now!" she laughed.

Heart must really like her, I thought, flashing back at how he stepped up to me to defend her.

"Yea we go way back. He always insists that he is my boyfriend…even though he will never be" she sighed; "He's just not my type, a bit of a show boat if you ask me" she shrugged.

I smiled, "Seems he hasn't changed since I beat him in that battle" I said.

"Actually, no he really has! His bond with his pokemon and the way he acts has improved significantly!" she responded.

"I'm glad…I guess he isn't that much of an idiot after all. He really isn't that bad when he focuses either" I said, thinking about my battle with Heart.

I looked at Spirit, who was smiling back at me.

I began to blush slightly, "What?" I growled at her.

"YOU SEE! I knew there was a nice guy under that front of a bad ass!" she said pointing at me, "You are a very caring person deep down! You're a good guy soul, so why do you act like such a prick?"

I stopped blushing and my face returned to a scowl.

"I'm not a nice guy; I just don't like what I don't like. If something bothers me I fix it. Other people's problems are their problems, I could care less!" I said.

Spirit sighed, "Well, let's go to bed, we have a tough morning ahead of us I bet. I'm gonna be bringing you to Cynthia, she's waiting for us in Eterna forest."

Spirit went to lie down on her bed. Once she was comfortably settled in, she reached out to the dresser by the bed and turned the light off and crawled back under her sheets.

I kicked off my shoes, and went to lie down on the floor, with my hands under my head.

"Oh and soul~" Spirit said in her innocent voice, "If you get lonely feel free to come cuddle next to me!" she giggled.

I began to blush, "You know, you are just as ecchi as your mom is!" I said out loud.

She laughed, "I know you won't do anything ;3" she said, and quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, we woke up early and started getting ready to head to Eterna Forest. We took turns taking showers to give each other some privacy in the bathroom. She put on her pink hoodie, and pulled up the hood to cover the back part of her head. We walked out together, and went to the lobby to find Heart and Core waiting for us.

"Morning Spirit~!" they said to her with hearts in their eyes.

"Morning boys!" she said with a smile.

Emperor and I trailed slowly behind her, not saying a word.

"Oi soul, don't know how to say what's up?" Heart said with a scowl.

I turned to him and Core, "Listen, you've been itchin' for a fight all night, you want to step outside or something?" I growled at him.

He was about to respond, but Spirit gently grabbed Heart's arm and she calmly shook her head.

He growled and turned around, "You got some nerve! After my training with Cynthia, I'd probably kick your ass anyway!" he said as we walked out of the Poke Center.

They lead me to a forest on the opposite side of town. They were laughing together having fun making jokes, as I followed them from a small distance away.

Emperor tapped me on the shoulder, "Yo, did you smash?" he said.

I shook my head, "Bro I barely know her, and that's not what I'm about."

Emperor stopped, and grabbed my shoulder. He glared at me in the eyes.

"Ok man, look. You are my leader, and I will follow you to the ends of the earth as your captain, your partner in crime. And listen I'm down with you on anything, but bro, let me know at least so I can adjust how I act with you."

Emperor paused and looked me in the eye with a serious face.

"Are you gay?" he asked.

I kicked him in the chest, and he fell over laughing.

"You're a piece of shit you know that…" I said coolly. He got up and continued to follow me laughing calmly.

~Heart's Perspective~

I turned to look at Soul, as it appeared as though he was having a full conversation with his pokemon.

"Yeah, he has no friends, and he's crazy…" I said sarcastically.

Core obnoxiously laughed at my joke.

Spirit punched me in the arm, "That's mean!" she said puffing out her cheeks.

Core and I were laughing in complete unison, "How do you explain that!" I said pointing back at Soul, while he was still talking to his pokemon.

Spirit turned to look at me, "He has the ability to communicate with pokemon through forming a bond. It's a very rare technique, that hasn't been seen since the great pokemon trainer, Yellow." She said with a smile.

Core and I looked at Spirit with surprised expressions all over our faces.

"So he can actually TALK to pokemon?" Core asked.

Spirit nodded with a smile, "Mhmm!"

My face changed, as I started thinking about when I first met Soul.

"No wonder why he got upset…when I was talking so high and mighty back when I got the gym badge from Roark…" I said.

I clenched my fist, "This Soul…He teaches me something every time we meet, I've got to admit I'm kind jealous now!" I laughed.

Suddenly, something curious came into my mind, "But wait...how did you know that?" I questioned Spirit.

Spirit began to blush, clearly becoming flustered, "Oh! er- He told me about it last night!? haha..." she said waving her arms.

I nodded solemnly, "Wow, he told you that? Didn't seem like the type to open up. Heh, who knew?" I said with a shrug and a smile.

Spirit let out a sigh of relief.

~Back to Soul~

We finally made it to this small cabin in the middle of a meadow, somewhere deep within Eterna Forest. Spirit walked up the front steps and knocked on the door. A Tall woman with Blonde hair answered the door.

"Hello! Nice of you guys to come!" she said with a graceful smile.

Spirit, Core and Heart all entered saying their hellos and greetings, and I stepped up to the door last.

Cynthia looked at me, "Oh! Might you be Soul?" she asked.

I nodded sternly. Cynthia held out her hand, "Cynthia, Champion of Sinnoh, nice to meet you Soul" She said with a smile.

Out of respect for her status, I softly shook her hand.

"My, my! So gentle! What a gentleman!" she said beaming at me.

I blushed, "Yeah whatever…Hey listen, I have some questions for you…" I said in a rushed tone.

"Sure! Please step inside!" she said.

I Shook my head, "I'd prefer it if you stepped outside" I signaled her to walk out to the field.

Her face grew serious. "Business before pleasure and niceties…Fine Soul, we'll do it your way," she turned to look at the others, "Please make yourselves at home, there is breakfast on the table, and I made it myself! It is quite exquisite, so do enjoy!" Cynthia said, as she closed the door.

"Follow me," she said in a serious tone as she led me deeper into the forest.

We walked for a few minutes into the forest until we were completely surrounded by huge trees.

Cynthia stopped and turned to me, "This is good enough. Please, I'd like to see all your pokemon" She said.

I released all my pokemon out of their pokeballs, and I had them line up. She examined them and nodded as she examined their physique and health.

"They have been through a lot with you, except this gliscor here," she pointed at gliscor.

"Is he new?" she asked.

I nodded, "I honestly don't know too much about him aside from what the pokedex told me about his moves and type. We recovered him during a confrontation with Syndicate" I said.

"Oh, I see. Do you know about the dark balls yet?" she asked, placing a hand on her hip.

I grunted in response and walked over to my gliscor.

"Yea, I've seen a couple of them, I still have one in fact. It seems to be able to overwrite the signatures made from regular pokemon caught with default pokeballs. They are made from a rare black apricot, only found in the Unova Region. This type of tech isn't cheap at all..." I said, making an observation from the dark ball I took.

Cynthia nodded, "And the microchip?" she asked.

I pulled it out of my pocket and handed it to her, "A Syndicate thug attempted to steal it. But me and a…friend…of mine were able to get it back" I thought about how Psyche saved my life, and I said a silent thank you in my head.

Cynthia sighed, "I'm glad it's safe…" she said.

I stared at her sternly, "If you knew people were after it, why the hell did you give it to me?!" I said coldly.

Cynthia looked at me, "After your little spat on TV, declaring that you would conquer everyone in a battle, two things happened," she walked over to gliscor, and began rubbing it's head.

"Firstly, I took it upon myself to test you and your ability to protect this microchip," she began, "Secondly, I figured it'd be safer with you, since no one would expect me to collaborate with someone who wants to take me down so bad" she said with a smile.

"Hmph, you're lucky, if that person hadn't come after me for it, I honestly woulda thrown it away" I said with an evil grin.

Cynthia laughed softly, "No you wouldn't have Soul, that's not who you are" she responded.

I clenched my fist in anger. "SINCE WHEN do people know me!? We've never even met before! You, AND Spirit! I DON'T know you and you DON'T know me!? SO HOW CAN YOU DECIDE WHO I AM-" Emperor walked up behind me, and grabbed my shoulder.

"That's enough!" he barked at me in anger.

I gritted my teeth in anger, and turned the other way.

"Soul…" began Huntress, "Please, don't get so angry! You're…scaring me" it whispered as it retreated behind Emperor.

I took in a deep breath and exhaled.

"You…You are right, it was wrong for me to involve you," began Cynthia, "However, after hearing about what you did against Syndicate in the cave by Jubalife, I thought we'd be on the same page…" Cynthia calmly walked over to me, "After what Team Galactic did to your father-"

I completely flipped out, and my fist acted on its own. I swung at full force ready to hit Cynthia in the face, but something inside of me stopped me. I began to tear up uncontrollably, as streams fell down my cheeks. But not tears of sadness, but of anger. I was so mad at everyone, so mad at everything around me. I was angry at myself because I couldn't do anything to save either of my parents from their inevitable ends.

Cynthia wrapped her hands around me, but I shoved her off, and quickly whipped off my tears. I don't want her pity, or anyone else's! I thought to myself.

"I get it, I get it…" I said, "You figured that I wanted to beat down guys like Team Galactic, because of what happened to my father…" I said angrily.

Cynthia nodded her head, "Can you tell me, why you stopped them that night" She asked.

I held out my hand and signaled to Huntress to come. She hesitated at first, but I motioned to her that it was okay. She sped over to me, giving me a hug.

"My sableye, Huntress, was attacked by those goons. They hurt her badly and left her to die. If I hadn't gone in there to save her that night, she could have been taken or worse, dead..." I stroked her head to help calm her down.

Cynthia smiled at what I said, "Exactly my point. That was a noble cause. You confuse it with the thought of protecting your own. But at the end of the day, you selflessly went out of your way to help this pokemon in need, and punished those men for harming her." Cynthia handed me the microchip, but I just looked at her.

"Take the microchip and guard it. Syndicate will find out that you met with me, and may think you handed it off to me or stashed it somewhere. Soul, in the wrong hands this can be a great weapon, so I will trust you to take care of this for me. Prove to me and my Elite 4 that you are a challenger worthy of respect." She said sternly.

I reached out my hand to meet hers, and took the microchip from her.

"Where do you want me to go with it?" I asked.

"Bring it to Snowpoint City, in about one month's time. Bring that with you then, and when you arrive there, meet with the Gym Leader Candice, and Prof. Oak. They will be waiting for you, ok?" I nodded in agreement.

"Now then, your pokemon need to study these moves…" Cynthia pulled out a few disks from her pocket,

"They are tms, use the pokedex to cipher the information, and use the guide to teach them to your pokemon. They are tm87 swagger, 05 Roar, 06 toxic, and 51 Roost. Follow the training exercises carefully, and use them wisely. And Soul," she said as she started walking back to the cabin,

"Ever attempt to punch me in the face again and I will make your life a living Hell…" she said coldly.

I grinned, and looked at the disks, "Hmph, I'll keep that in mind…" I said, as I pocketed them, and followed her back to the cabin.